X Factor winner Tate Stevens stopped by to chat with PARADE about his debut album, trading his blue-collar job for country stardom, what Simon Cowell‘s really like behind the scenes, and more.

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Tate Stevens won over X Factor fans with his classic country voice. Now, the modest family man, who left his job as a road construction worker to take a shot at superstardom, is ready to share his self-titled debut album (due out April 23) with the fans who voted for him all season long.

“It’s fun, and it’s country!” he tells PARADE. “I’m proud of it.”

Stevens also praised the country-loving fans who got him to where he is now.

“I’m a country fan myself, and I know how loyal we are. For me to win a pop-driven teenage show was big, and it speaks volumes for country music fans,” he says.

Be sure to check out this weekend’s issue of PARADE for more from Tate Stevens.